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Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic-Nordic Region 2020

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A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "A4: Bio-Energy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2020) | Viewed by 23990

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Timo Kikas

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Guest Editor

Biosystems Engineering, Institute of Technology, Estonian University of Life Sciences, 51014 Tartu, Estonia
Interests: bioeconomy; biofuels; biomass conversion; biomethane; bioethanol; lignocellulosic biomass; pretreatment; renewable transport fuels
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Marcis Jansons

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Guest Editor

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Wayne State University, 5050 Anthony Wayne Dr., Detroit, MI 48202, USA
Interests: engine technology; combustion; optical diagnostics; propulsion systems
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Biosystems Engineering (BSE) aims to become the leading annual conference in the Baltic region in fields related to traditional and modern engineering techniques and technical solutions applied to biological systems. The goal of BSE 2020 is to gather scholars from all over the world to present advances in the fields of biosystems engineering, and to foster an environment conducive to exchanging ideas and information. This year, the conference will take place virtually on an e-platform. However, we still hope to provide an environment to develop new collaborations and meet experts on the fundamentals, applications, and products related to the mentioned fields.

Among the more prominent topics of the conference are energy and fuels from renewable sources, bioenergy, waste-to-energy, energy efficiency, etc.

Prof. Dr. Timo Kikas
Prof. Marcis Jansons
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Smart energy systems
Energy policy
Energy system analysis
Renewable energy resources
Advanced sustainable energy conversion systems
Renewable heat systems
Biofuels and biorefineries
Alternative fuels
Hybrid and electric vehicles
Energy storage
Energy efficient appliances
Energy efficiency in buildings

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

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10 pages, 1376 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation of Buckwheat Hulls as Additives in the Production of Solid Biomass Fuel from Straw

by Mindaugas Kulokas, Marius Praspaliauskas and Nerijus Pedišius

Energies 2021, 14(2), 265; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14020265 - 06 Jan 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 1766

Abstract

The aim of this study was to further increase the amount of straw that can be used to produce solid biofuels, as currently only about 130–140 thousand of the 3 million tonnes of straw collected annually in Lithuania are used for solid biofuel production. Therefore, the use of buckwheat hulls as an additive in solid biofuel production was investigated. Mixtures of wheat straw and buckwheat hulls were used for this research, with an increase in buckwheat hulls from 25% to 75% of the total weight of the mixture. Results of the analysis of the chemical composition, moisture, ash, and volatile matter content of the mixtures, as well as their ash properties, were compared with the corresponding results obtained with pure buckwheat hulls, wheat straw, and wood chips. It is observed an increase in all ash melting temperatures by increasing the portion of buckwheat hulls in the mixture. Additionally, the ash shrinkage starting temperature was shown to increase as the total content of buckwheat hulls also increased in the mixture. This increase ranged from 90 °C to 210 °C. Furthermore, the Cl concentration in fuel mixtures and the corrosion risk of equipment are accordingly reduced by using buckwheat hulls, as an addition that does not contain Cl. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic-Nordic Region 2020)

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11 pages, 1044 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Selected Fuel Properties of Alcohol and Rapeseed Oil Blends

by Carolin Nuortila, Riikka Help, Katriina Sirviö, Helena Suopanki, Sonja Heikkilä and Seppo Niemi

Energies 2020, 13(15), 3821; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13153821 - 25 Jul 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2264

Abstract

The alcohols ethanol and 1-butanol are interesting options as blending components for renewable fuels. We studied whether it is possible to mix these alcohols with a little refined material, rapeseed oil, to obtain stable fuel samples. At room temperature, the stable samples consisted of rapeseed oil blended with butanol at 5 vol-%, 10 vol-%, 20 vol-%, 30 vol-% and one sample of rapeseed oil with 5 vol-% of ethanol. The samples’ fuel properties analysed were kinematic viscosity (at 40 °C), density (at 15 °C) and surface tension. Cold filter plugging point was measured for rapeseed oil with 20 vol-% and 30 vol-% of butanol. Stability of butanol or ethanol and rapeseed oil blends can be achieved at the studied volumes. The density of neat rapeseed oil and all the alcohol–rapeseed oil blends met the requirements set for residual marine fuels. The 30 vol-% butanol–rapeseed oil blend met the requirements for distillate marine oil for density, and almost for kinematic viscosity. The blends appeared most suitable for power plants and marine engines. More detailed analyses of their properties are needed before recommendations for use can be given. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic-Nordic Region 2020)

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16 pages, 4407 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Diesel Fuel-Coconut Oil-Butanol Blends on Operational Parameters of Diesel Engine

by Jakub Čedík, Martin Pexa, Michal Holúbek, Zdeněk Aleš, Radek Pražan and Peter Kuchar

Energies 2020, 13(15), 3796; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13153796 - 24 Jul 2020

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2607

Abstract

The global concentration of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere is increasing as well as the emissions of harmful pollutants. Utilization of liquid biofuels in combustion engines helps to reduce these negative effects. For diesel engines, the most common alternative fuels are based on vegetable oils. Blending neat vegetable oils with diesel and/or alcohol fuels is a simple way to make them suitable for diesel engines. In this study, coconut oil was used in ternary fuel blends with diesel and butanol. Coconut oil is a potentially usable source of renewable energy, especially in the Pacific, where it is a local product. Diesel fuel-coconut oil-butanol fuel blends were used in concentrations of 70%/20%/10% and 60%/20%/20%, and 100% diesel fuel was used as a reference. The effect of the fuel blends on the production of harmful emissions, engine smoke, performance parameters, fuel consumption and solid particles production was monitored during the measurement. The engine was kept at a constant speed during the measurement and the load was selected at 50%, 75% and 100%. From the results, it can be stated that in comparison with diesel fuel, specific fuel consumption increased with a positive effect on the reduction of engine smoke. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic-Nordic Region 2020)

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11 pages, 2899 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Impact of Diethyl Ether/Rapeseed Oil Blends on Performance and Emissions of a Light-Duty Diesel Vehicle

by Ruslans Smigins and Arturs Zakis

Energies 2020, 13(15), 3788; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13153788 - 23 Jul 2020

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2332

Abstract

This article presents results of experimental study of diesel, rapeseed oil and three different blends of 10%, 20% and 30% diethyl ether addition to rapeseed oil, tested on VW Golf vehicle on chassis dynamometer Mustang MD-1750. Fuel consumption and emission tests were conducted at different testing conditions: idling, 50 km/h, 90 km/h, as also IM-240 cycle. The analysis of obtained results have shown reduction of engine power by 6.2%–17.3% and increase of fuel consumption by 0.6%–15.5% (based on testing conditions) for all blends based on DEE addition compared to RO, demonstrating better perspectives for low level blends. Emission tests have shown decrease of hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides (NOx) for all blends with DEE content in almost all testing conditions and also slight increase of carbon monoxides and carbon dioxides compared to rapeseed oil. Largest decrease of NOx was observed during 90 km/h and cycle IM-240 reaching almost 24% reduction for 20DEE and 30DEE in comparison to neat RO. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic-Nordic Region 2020)

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13 pages, 1880 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Impact of Pretreatment on Hydrothermally Carbonized Spruce

by Anna Partridge, Ekaterina Sermyagina and Esa Vakkilainen

Energies 2020, 13(11), 2984; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13112984 - 10 Jun 2020

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2078

Abstract

Upgrading biomass waste streams can improve economics in wood industries by adding value to the process. This work considers use of a hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) process for the residual feedstock after lignin and hemicelluloses extraction. Batch experiments were performed at 200–240 °C temperatures and three hours residence time with an 8:1 biomass to water ratio for two feedstocks: Raw spruce and spruce after lignin extraction. The proximate analysis and heating value showed similar results for both feedstocks, indicating that the thermochemical conversion is not impacted by the removal of lignin and hemicelluloses; the pretreatment processing slightly increases the heating value of the treated feedstock, but the HTC conversion process produces a consistent upgrading trend for both the treated and untreated feedstocks. The energy yield was 9.7 percentage points higher for the treated wood on average across the range temperatures due to the higher mass yield in the treated experiments. The energy densification ratio and the mass yield were strongly correlated with reaction temperature, while the energy yield was not. Lignocellulosic composition of the solid HTC product is mainly affected by HTC treatment, the effect of lignin extraction is negligible. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic-Nordic Region 2020)

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Review

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24 pages, 1584 KiB

Open AccessReview

The Role of Ionic Liquids in the Lignin Separation from Lignocellulosic Biomass

by Isa Hasanov, Merlin Raud and Timo Kikas

Energies 2020, 13(18), 4864; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13184864 - 17 Sep 2020

Cited by 46 | Viewed by 7387

Abstract

Lignin is a natural polymer, one that has an abundant and renewable resource in biomass. Due to a tendency towards the use of biochemicals, the efficient utilization of lignin has gained wide attention. The delignification of lignocellulosic biomass makes its fractions (cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin) susceptible to easier transformation to many different commodities like energy, chemicals, and materials that could be produced using the biorefinery concept. This review gives an overview of the field of lignin separation from lignocellulosic biomass and changes that occur in the biomass during this process, as well as taking a detailed look at the influence of parameters that lead the process of dissolution. According to recent studies, a number of ionic liquids (ILs) have shown a level of potential for industrial scale production in terms of the pretreatment of biomass. ILs are perspective green solvents for pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass. These properties in ILs enable one to disrupt the complex structure of lignocellulose. In addition, the physicochemical properties of aprotic and protic ionic liquids (PILs) are summarized, with those properties making them suitable solvents for lignocellulose pretreatment which, especially, target lignin. The aim of the paper is to focus on the separation of lignin from lignocellulosic biomass, by keeping all components susceptible for biorefinery processes. The discussion includes interaction mechanisms between lignocellulosic biomass subcomponents and ILs to increase the lignin yield. According to our research, certain PILs have potential for the cost reduction of LC biomass pretreatment on the feasible separation of lignin. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic-Nordic Region 2020)

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20 pages, 2044 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperReview

Origin, Impact and Control of Lignocellulosic Inhibitors in Bioethanol Production—A Review

by Nikki Sjulander and Timo Kikas

Energies 2020, 13(18), 4751; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13184751 - 11 Sep 2020

Cited by 63 | Viewed by 4899

Abstract

Bioethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass is still struggling with many obstacles. One of them is lignocellulosic inhibitors. The aim of this review is to discuss the most known inhibitors. Additionally, the review addresses different detoxification methods to degrade or to remove inhibitors from lignocellulosic hydrolysates. Inhibitors are formed during the pretreatment of biomass. They derive from the structural polymers-cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. The formation of inhibitors depends on the pretreatment conditions. Inhibitors can have a negative influence on both the enzymatic hydrolysis and fermentation of lignocellulosic hydrolysates. The inhibition mechanisms can be, for example, deactivation of enzymes or impairment of vital cell structures. The toxicity of each inhibitor depends on its chemical and physical properties. To decrease the negative effects of inhibitors, different detoxification methods have been researched. Those methods focus on the chemical modification of inhibitors into less toxic forms or on the separation of inhibitors from lignocellulosic hydrolysates. Each detoxification method has its limitations on the removal of certain inhibitors. To choose a suitable detoxification method, a deep molecular understanding of the inhibition mechanism and the inhibitor formation is necessary. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic-Nordic Region 2020)

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